Who doesn't love a bit of unconventional business wisdom! Ben Leonard has no business training. In fact, his background is in Ecology. Oh, and he’s a whale and dolphin nerd, who had no interest in fitness, until his mid 20s, when he decided to build a successful online fitness brand called Beast Gear which, in its third year, turned over six million large ones! It’s an unbelievable episode 654 of The (14 year-old, award-winning) Small Business Big Marketing podcast.
A little more about this episode
First and foremost Ben Leonard is an ecologist by trade, and a self-confessed whale and dolphin nerd.
Thanks to a health scare, he’s also the founder of Beast Gear, an online business, built on a laptop, in a cupboard, in his spare time, with an initial £1,000 investment.
Three years later, Beast Gear was turning over more than £4 million at which point Ben achieved business’s Holy Grail …. and exited for life on a hammock.
Well, that’s not exactly true … whilst he did exit with a nice little earn, he’s already in the throes of at least two more online business ideas … one which I absolutely love.
Oh, and he’s also written a book titled Quit Stalling & Build Your Online Brand. What is it with these millennials?!
In this chat, Ben generously shares where the idea for Beast Gear came from, how he scaled using chatbots and Instagram, why a huge fitness brand tried to sue him and failed, plus he’s a big fan of the business learnings from Sonic the Hedgehog!
With all this success, and with so many eCommerce stores out there, I started off by asking Ben whether it’s too late for the average Joe to start one.
Links Mentioned
Grab a copy (plus some free goodies) of Ben Leonard's book Quit Stalling And Build Your Online Brand.
Businesses that make this podcast possible
StudioHawk - No generalists, just a damn good SEO agency (award-winning actually!).
Patreon - Join Timbo's Business Owner Membership and take control of your marketing.
Book Tim Reid - Keynote or conference emceeing.
As always, thanks for your support. May your marketing be the best marketing.
Timbo Reid
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Unconventional & Unstoppable: Parker Olson's Wild Marketing Tactics That Are Redefining Marketing | 663
Renae Bunster's Fiery Path to Success: Transforming a Passion for Hot Sauce into a Thriving Food & Beverage Business | 662
Tips for looking sharp in business with New York fashion stylist Nicole Russo | 661
How to create an untouchable business by doing less | 660
Being On-Purpose & Honouring Your Creativity with Frank Greeff | 659
Tiny Cabins, Big Names: How Unyoked Caught the Eye of Matthew McConaughey & Apple | 658
Mastering SEO 2024: Leveraging Helpful Marketing for Top Rankings with Harry Sanders | 657
From the Kardashian's Doorstep to Aerial Banners: The Unconventional Marketing Genius of Shhh Silk's Olivia Carr | 656
Frank Greeff's $180 million dollar roll of the dice | 655
Stuck On The AI Treadmill? How To Put AI To Work For Your Business | 653
Inside the Canva Empire: The $25.5B Vision of a 19-Year-Old Melanie Perkins | 652
Discovering Your Unique Business Niche: Lessons from the Master of Category Design, Christopher Lochhead | 651
Go for stupid and achieve the unbelievable with Steve Sims | 650
B2B Sales Tips For Small Business With BindiMaps Mladen Jovanovic | 649
How a $40 million stone business owner has built a rock-solid empire | 648
AI for small business: A beginner’s guide with Dr Catriona Wallace | 647
How (& why) to target small compounding growth initiatives not short-term sales with Ferndale's Leigh Edward | 646
How to slowly launch a successful FMCG brand | 645
Reality TV Veteran Dan Munday on how to generate big ideas | 644
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
The Commercial Edge: Unleash the Power of People
The emPOWERed Half Hour
Communication Research Podcast
Blog Talk Radio.com Featured Upcoming and Live Shows
New Books in Communications
Powerful Insights
Solo Practice University® Guest Lectures